Our People
Students
Buxton enrolls between 90-95 students a year, of which nearly 90% board at the school. Our students come from all over the world, but are united in the core belief of the value of community, creative expression and academic achievement.

All of our students go on to further study, with the majority choosing small, liberal arts colleges that share values with Buxton.
Faculty

The faculty and staff at Buxton are committed to the school, our philosophy of learning and our students. Many have advanced degrees and most have significant teaching experience. They are given great freedom to design their own courses and respond with flexibility and sensitivity to specific groups and individuals.
All teaching families and most teachers live at the school. Along with teaching in the classroom, faculty members have leadership, administrative, and caretaking responsibilities.
At Buxton, students and faculty share their lives in ways both mundane and profound, forming bonds that range far beyond the typical classroom interactions. Over the course of a day, you might be woken up by your math teacher, eat lunch with your French teacher, and sing next to your English teacher during a chorus rehearsal.
We see the development of honest and caring friendships between adults and students not just as a lucky by-product of our program but as an educational goal in and of itself.
Progressive education Fellows

Since 1928, Buxton has been training teachers in the theory and practice of progressive education. Starting with the 2019-2020 school year, we have begun offering an exciting new opportunity designed especially for starting teachers: the Progressive Education Teaching Fellowship.
Over the course of a single year, our Teaching Fellows receive constant support and training as they enter the world of progressive education. With access to and support from expert teachers and administrators, our Teaching Fellows participate in the life of the school, observe classes, discuss the theory and practice of teaching, and ultimately design and lead their own courses. Each Fellowship comes with a stipend, as well as room and board at the school’s beautiful campus in the Berkshires.
By the end of this intensive but supportive year of training, our Teaching Fellows have a deep grounding in progressive education. The Fellowship provides an unparalleled way to start a career in education – but is also just an incredible year in its own right!
Applications are now open for our 2020-21 Fellowship. To find out more, and to apply, please contact our Associate Director, Peter Beck, at peter.beck@buxtonschool.org
Administration and Staff
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Ben Ripley (2007) Associate Director
B.A. St. John’s College NM, M.F.A. School of the Art Institute of Chicago
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Mike St.Pierre (1980) Director of Campus Facilities
Faculty
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David Bluestein ’08 (2016)
M.A.T Earlham College. Chemistry, Algebra II, Psychology, Main House Dormitory
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Linda Kathryn Burlak (1988)
B.A. Carleton College; M.S. Cornell University Physics, Biology, Marine Science, Astronomy, Academic Dean, Testing Advisor,
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Nyasha Franklin ’15 (2019) Faculty Fellow
B.A. Mount Holyoke College
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Frank Jackson (2007)
BFA Virginia Commonwealth University; MFA University of California at Davis Painting, Drawing, Life Drawing
Basketball -
Adrian Lash-St. John ’00 (2004)
B.A. Bennington College
Algebra II, Intro to Trigonometry, Calculus
Skiing and Snowboarding, Work Program -
Amrita Lash-St. John ’99 (2003)
B.A. Bennington College
Ceramics, Folk Singing -
Brette Lennon (2020) Faculty Fellow
B.A Anthropology, B.A Environmental Studies, Tufts University
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Stuart McKenzie (2020)
B.A. Music & Chemistry, Amherst College, Music I,II,III
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Kathleen Oliver (1987)
African, Caribbean and Balinese Dance, Drumming and Percussion, Gamelan
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Kevin Reilly (2020)
Williams College, BA in English, 2002
Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College, MEd, Secondary English, 2013
Center for Cartoon Studies, MFA, 2019, English I, Creative Writing -
Ben Ripley ’99 (2007)
B.A. St. John’s College NM, M.F.A. School of the Art Institute of Chicago Geometry, Photography,
Life Drawing -
Franny Shuker-Haines, Director (1997)
B.A. Wesleyan University
English III, Drama I & II, Creative writing
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Timothy Shuker-Haines (1997)
B.A. Swarthmore College; M.A. San Francisco State University; Ph.D. University of Michigan
American History, The Western Tradition, Economics
All-School Trip -
Derek Yiu (2012)
B.A. University of Hawaii at Manoa: Certificate in Teaching English as a Second Language; M.A. TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) Monterey Institute of International Studies, Middlebury College
Intermediate ESL, Advanced ESL, Spanish I, Conversational Mandarin,
Gate House Dormitory, Soccer, Basketball, Indoor Soccer, Ultimate Frisbee